AllXClub

Why Open Source is your best bet…

Online social communities, like Myspace, Facebook or Bebo, are becoming increasingly popular. Communities like these, as well as other social networks, are powered by social networking scripts. An online social network is a network of users (or organizations/companies) usually bound by a common theme, such as common interests, geographical location, education or professional position. This social construct allows the users to information and experience, form new connections, contribute and establish sub-communities.

Downloading a social networking script engine should be your first step, if you are about to build your own social networking community. You will find that there are a lot of commercial as well as free solutions available online. I will however stress, that when you are deciding which social networking script to get, you should definitely consider a free, open-source solution. An open-source product holds many advantages over a commercial solution, the main one being that it is free and you won’t risk anything when implementing it. ?

What to look for in a social networking scripts package

Not all open source social networking scripts are the same, not all will come with the same functionality. So what to look for? Here is a list of features you should look out for:

Customization and Dynamics
High customization is a must when building a social network. Many free social networking scripts are highly customizable and will allow you to structure your community any way[/wpin] you want to. [spin]Look for social networking scripts that support pre-build plugins and mods, usally these are build and supported by passionate individuals within the community and and are included at no additional cost.

Open-Source and Free
As mentioned before, before you go purchasing social networking scripts left and right, try out the many open source and free solutions available online. an open source social networking script will allow you to experiment without actually investing financially. Go for open-source packages, they are supported by a passionate community, you can seek help from a large number of people whenever you get stuck.

Modding and theming
Open-source software supports theming and modding. Websites running on open source social networking scripts can be modified and themed to the hearts demand, allowing you to create something truly unique and distinguishable.

User Control Capabilities
Powerful user management capabilities are a must. Your new community must be able to support a growing number of people. Social networking scripts, which come with in-build user control and management hold an immense advantage over those that do not support this feature. User management modules will allow you to manage users

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